The course explores the Reality-TV genre as offering a unique perspective on the medium of television. This genre is important not only because it has no direct parallel in other media, but also because it represents a moment when the foundations of the medium are redefined. Reality-TV forces us to ask anew what is a televisual representation, what is a televised person, what is the difference between documentary and entertainment, what action does the television camera perform, and what social action is entailed in watching television. In the course we will study the evolution of the genre and its various forms – from docu-soap and self improvement programs to the Reality game shows. We will look at different ways to define the genre and its difference from documentary and traditional forms of entertainment, and explore ways to account for what iis "real" in Reality-TV. In addition we will keep track of some surprising contexts in which the genre situates television – television as a means of control, television as a social experiment, television as a technology of the self and more.